Combe Head
735m (2412ft)
The Southern Fells, The Lake District, Cumbria, England
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You can find Combe Head & all the walks that climb it on these unique free-to-access Interactive Walk Planning Maps: (click/TAP to select)
1:25,000 scale OS Explorer Map (the ones with orange/yellow covers):
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See Combe Head and the surrounding tops on our free-to-access 'Google Style' Peak Bagging Maps:
See Combe Head and the surrounding tops on our downloadable PDF Peak Bagging Maps:
*Walk & bag all 30 Wainwrights in The Southern Fells area of The Lake District in just 11 easy-to-follow circular walks.
*This version is marked with the walk routes you need to follow to Walk all 214 Wainwrights in just 59 walks. Click here for more information.
NB: Whether you print off a copy on to paper or download it to your phone, these PDF Peak Baggers Maps will prove incredibly useful when your are up there on the tops and you cannot get a phone signal!
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 10.5ml (17km) |
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| Ascent: | 3,407ft (1,038m) |
| Time: | 7.25hrs |
| Grade: |  (Hard) |
Route Summary:
Seatoller - Big Stanger Gill - Hanging Haystack Crag - Alisongrass Crag - Rosthwaite Fell (Bessyboot) - Tarn At Leaves - Rosthwaite Cam (Rosthwaite Fell) - Dovenest Top - Combe Door Top - Combe Head - Glaramara - Looking Steads (Glaramara) - Red Beck Top - High House Tarn Top - Allen Crags - Sprinking Tarn - Seathwaite Fell (South Top) - Seathwaite Fell - Grains Gill - The Allerdale Ramble - Stockley Bridge - Seathwaite (Borrowdale) - Thornythwaite Farm - Strands Bridge - The River Derwent - Seatoller
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Vital Statistics:
| Length: | 10.5ml (17km) |
|---|---|
| Ascent: | 3,384ft (1,031m) |
| Time: | 7.25hrs |
| Grade: | (Hard) |
Route Summary:
Stonethwaite - Big Stanger Gill - Hanging Haystack Crag - Alisongrass Crag - Rosthwaite Fell (Bessyboot) - Tarn At Leaves - Rosthwaite Cam (Rosthwaite Fell) - Dovenest Top - Combe Door Top - Combe Head - Glaramara - Looking Steads (Glaramara) - Red Beck Top - High House Tarn Top - Allen Crags - Esk Hause - Allencrags Gill - Langstrath - Stonethwaite
Fellow go4awalkers who have already walked, climbed, summited & bagged Combe Head
John Ramsbottom walked up Combe Head on March 16th, 2025 [from/via/route] Dow Cragg, The Old Man of Coniston,Brim Fell,Swirl How, Great Carrs & Grey Friar. Start from Seatoller, Rosthwaite Fell, Glaramara, Allen Crags & Seathwaite Fell [with] Lola [weather] Fine, Odd shower, chilly wind - First one in a while. First of 2025. Felt hard
Paul Macey climbed Combe Head on June 22nd, 2021 [from/via/route] Walk 139 [with] Luke Macey [weather] Sunny
Darren Mortimer bagged Combe Head on June 7th, 2017 [with] Dermot Palmer [weather] Warm & sunny.
Caroline Winter hiked Combe Head on November 29th, 2022 [from/via/route] Seatoller CP, Strands bridge, Thornythwaite Fell, scramble up Combe gill, Combe Head, Dovenest Top, Tarn at Leaves, down the track to car [with] Alone [weather] Clear, sunny, & inverted cloud formations - Had planned to finish the HEWITTS in September & that was the official completion for me, but Combe Head had been added as a newer inclusion. Frustratingly, I had not included it in the Glaramara top. First time walked up Combe Gill route & the path was difficult to follow & due to excess rainfall, very slippery. Ended up scrambling up the hill to gain the top. Stunning scenery today. Way back, did Dove Nest crag a third time & decided against the steep short cut to Seathwaite, due to the we rocks.
Stephen Eddy summited Combe Head on October 28th, 2022 [from/via/route] Seatoller [with] Sinead O'Callaghan, Martin & Tracey Bayliss [weather] Dry, very windy at summit
John Tippins conquered Combe Head on October 27th, 2022 [from/via/route] From Seatoller [with] Alone [weather] Dry to start with & mild - t-shirt mild for the ascent. Started to rain mid-morning, then rained on & off all day. Very low cloud - in cloud for most of the walk. Wind quite calm. - Not an enjoyable walk, particularly the stretch from Rosthwaite to Glaramara. Confronted with many sheer rock faces that you have to find a way over. And I forgot the warning about the scree at Aaron Crags until I was part way down. It was bad. 'Not for the faint hearted' - you're not kidding.
Kevin Foster scaled Combe Head on June 1st, 2021 [from/via/route] Seathwaite. [with] By myself. [weather] Sunny & Hot. - There were too many tops visited on this walk to give a full description of each one. The route of the walk roughly followed the Sty Head Tarn path via Stockley Bridge, then as the path levelled off a steep ascent up the flanks of Seathwaite Fell to reach Wainwright's Top, then the true summit (Main Top) followed by a subsidiary top (South Top). The route then went past Sprinkling Tarn & climbed to Esk Hause (not the true one) before turning left & climbing to the summit of Allen Crags. Numerous tops were then visited along the undulating & interesting ridge including Glaramara & Rosthwaite Fell before descending off the ridge by dropping left at Tarn at Leaves into the ravine of Rottenstone Gill (not as bad as it sounds!). On reaching the lane to Thorneythwaite another left turn down a tarmac road & across field paths eventually led me back to the car parked at Seathwaite. Another tiring but superb day in The Lakes. I do feel as though I am saving the best until last with these Western & Southern Fells?
Simon Myerscough walked up Combe Head on April 1st, 2007 [from/via/route] C139 [with] Martin & Bill [weather] Sunny, chilly-ish
Mark Davidson climbed Combe Head on October 10th, 2005 [with] Mike [weather] Typical October Day - a bit grey
Iain Taylor bagged Combe Head on April 4th, 2010 [from/via/route] Seathwaite (NY 23591 12285)
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